Biography

Susanne Svantesson received her dance education at Stockholm´s University of Dance 1984-1987. Susanne started her dance career with the Windwitches Dance Company directly after graduating. The company was situated at the Glass House on Stockholms South Island.Here they rehearsed and performed over a long period of time. Windwitches also toured extensively, both in Sweden and internationally. Susanne danced in productions De Levande (The living), Flygare (Flier) and Tiden reser okänd – vild (Time travel unknown – Wild)

Susanne later danced with Per Jonsson and his newly started company, performing in his productions of Nimrûd and Okänd dans (Unknown dance).

Susanne has freelanced with many different Swedish choreographers such as Margaretha Åsberg, Birgitta Egerbladh, Greta Lindholm, Linda Forsman, Carina Reich & Bogdan Szyber, Susanne Jaresand, Claire Parsons, Lisbeth Hagerman och Christina Tingskog.

In 2012, Susanne collaborated with Susanne Jaresand in the dance and theater performance Priklopils öga (Priklopils eye), a solo performance based on the stirring, true story of kidnapped, Natascha Kampusch

In 2013, Susanne participated in Quadangular by choreographer Linda Forsman. Susanne has worked with Linda in several performances, such as Rotogostra and Menhir as well as in major educational projects in connection with the child production Oceanid.

Performances she has participated in are listed at the foot of this page (in selection).

More about these performances can also be read here » DANCE.

Susanne Svantesson in Flygare (Flier) by Windwitches dance company

Photographer: © Lesley Leslie-Spinks

“Congenial to the choreography so that she shines is Susanne Svantesson who has danced a few years already with the group. Her inner balance, wise look and secret smile seem to carry an answer to the conundrum that Eva Lundqvist stopped at “Surrounded by streaming rain, life images are painted freely”.

Margareta Sörenson | Expressen 8 november 1990.

Susanne Svantesson and Mikael Strid in Nimrûd. Choreographer: Per Jonsson. Dansens Hus Stockholm 1991. Photographer: © Lesley Leslie-Spinks.

“Per Jonsson has created a large group of dancers, chosen from freelance groups, and established his own dance company, with many from the younger generation who learned to work with his personal expression within the group … Susanne Svantesson, whose serious smile and light presence, he observed and took into his creation of ”Nimrûd”.

Margareta Sörenson | Expressen 19 februari 1991

The Hidden by Carina Reich and Bogdan Szyber. A dance piece which was performed outdoors at “Sergels torg” in Stockholm, “Stora torget” in Umeå among other places.

”Cascades of water, plumes of steam, white-clad dancers who splattered water with their long hair. On Saturday night, the citizens of Sundsvall got to see the equivalent of a rock concert on the square: The Hidden, a 30 minute performance.”

Sundsvalls tidning 9 september 2001 with photo by Sören Walldin.

Quadangular Choreographer: Linda Forsman Korda Art in Motion, 2013

Dancers: Susanne Svantesson, Linda Forsman, Malin Rönnerman.

Photographer: © Linda Lundin | Arbetarbladet

Productions

Susanne has worked as a choreographer since 1990. This has taken place in parallel with his work as a freelance dancer.

A strong driving force has always been to meet people both from the dance field and from other art forms in a creative process.

Among the early productions can be mentioned Det beror på… (It depends on…) and Vinda, a children and youth show that toured for several years in Sweden, knok at Moderna Dansteatern and Stråk.

In recent years, Susanne has performed several solo performances in close collaboration with composers and musicians. Quartet de la passion, a premiere by composer/cathedral organist Claes Holmgren in Visby Cathedral. The music was performed live by the string quartet EricsBergskvartetten, 2017.

Together with violinist Marja Inkinen Engström and pianist Marianne Rönkkönen, a performance has grown up to Prokofiev’s violin concerto no. 2 in G minor. This performance has been performed at the Gothenburg Concert Hall and in Paris on two occasions, including at the Cercle Suédoise | Swedish club in Paris 2018.

Quartet de la passion, Visby Cathedral, 2017.

Prokofiev – music and dance. House concert in the author Birgitta Lindqvist’s home in Paris in December 2017.

Photographer: © Malin Eklund

The composer Carin Bartosch Edström and Susanne met during Bergman Week 2016 when Susanne was invited to show the film Men who dance. Carin had then composed music both for Bergman Week’s inaugural concert and the work Persona Perpetua, which was premiered in performance by the string quartet EricsBergskvartetten.

Since 2016, Susanne and Carin have collaborated on both film and dance. Carin has written music for the film The blue dress and for Susanne’s stage production Indigo, which premieres in October 2020. This performance contains dance, film, music and text and is part of the work around the sculptor Camille Claudel’s art and life – a study that resulted in the short film The blue dress and Indigo.

Read more under Dance and for Filmbiography see Film.

DANCE
FILM

Indigo 2020 Dancer: Unn Dahlman

Photographer: © Susanne Svantesson

Susanne has appeared in many collaborations which have resulted in performances.

A strong driving force has always been to meet people from the dance world and also from other art forms in a creative process.

 

ÄLVDANS & VRÅL and HELT ENKELT were concepts created together with Barbro Isaksson. 

ÄLVDANS & VRÅL as made up of two solos and a duet in collaboration with voice virtuoso Erik Lindman from the group Viba Femba. Södra Teatern 1994.

HELT ENKELT performed at the “Köttfabriken”,  in Stockholm. The public was invited to see and hear, dance, music, art and exhibitions and to remain afterwards to mingle in the bar and enjoy the live music.

Ny dans på Gammalt Slott (New dance at the old castle) Svartsjö Slott 2013. A performance at the Svartsjö Castle outside Stockholm, where choreographers, dancers and artists from the North created a travelling exhibition/show in the old Castle´s crumbling room and out in the palace garden.  Susanne made two performances; Ny dans i gammalt slott and Gräs (Grass) in collaboration with Minna Krook.

In 2012 Susanne participated in Manuskriptet Dodo on Weld i Stockholm. This was a chain-project in which eleven choreographers and dancers in various formations, created their own works using the same project idea, initiated by Koreografiska Institutet. Here she performed the solo Manuskriptet Dodo Crossfade, choreography by Susanne in collaboration with Marcus Baldemar and Karina Sarkissova.

Älvdans & Vrål, Södra Teatern 1994

Choreography | Dance: Barbro Isaksson and Susanne Svantesson Photographer: © Christer Ulvås

Gräs, Svartsjö slott 1997

Choreography | Dance: Minna Krook and Susanne Svantesson Photographer: © Brita Olsson

Ny dans på gammalt slott, Svartsjö Slott 1997

Choreography | Dance: Susanne Svantesson Costume: Gertrud Olsson Photographer: © Brita Olsson

The Manuscript Dodo Crossfade, Weld 2012

Photographer: © Nadja Voorham 

・ Pyramiderna – Margaretha Åsberg, 1985

・ Gass – för lina och nio, Christina Tingskog, 1986

・ Liten tuva – Helena Davidsson-Nordelius, Södra Teatern 1987

・ Ye e ha – Kenneth Kvarnström Moderna Dansteatern, 1987

・ Låt miljonärerna gå nakna – Susanne Jaresand, 1987

・ Ihålor – Christina Tingskog, 1987

・ Brott – Helena Davidsson-Nordelius, Plaza, 1987

・ De levande – Vindhäxor, 1988

・ Flygare – Vindhäxor, 1989

・ Tiden reser okänd – vild – Vindhäxor, 1990

・ Nimrud – Per Jonsson, 1991

・ Okänd Dans – Per Jonsson, 1991

・ Madame! – Birgitta Egerbladh, Riksteatern, 1992

・ Den siste bonden – Birgitta Egerbladh, Riksteatern, 1992

・ Kaskad – Greta Lindholm, Riksteatern, 1992

・ Nomad – Christina Tingskog, Kulturhuset 1993

・ Unknown Pleasures – Claire Parsons, 1993

・ Bliss – Claire Parsons, Dansens Hus, 1994

・ Aria – Claire Parsons, Elverket 1994

・ Intervall – Lisbeth Hagerman, 1995

・ Menhir – Linda Forsman, 1995

・ Oceanid – Linda Forsman

・ Rotogostra – Linda Forsman, 2000, 2001

・ Bland skuggsvinglar och bombulander – Lisbeth Hagerman,  1998

・ The Hidden – Carina Reich och Bogdan Szyber, 1999, 2001

・ Priklopils Öga – Susanne Jaresand, 2012

・ Quadangular – Linda Forsman, 2013

・ en hög med vatten – Konstfack 1990

・ avtryck – Konstfack 1991

・ dans för en och pukor – Historiska Museet 1993, musik/slagverkare Niklas Brommare

・ labyrint – Blå Station i Åhus 1993

・ helt enkelt – Köttfabriken 1993, dansföreställning, musik, installationer, improviserad danshändelse för annorlunda lokaler, en fd köttfabrik. Initiativtagare tillsammans med Barbro Isaksson.

・ älvdans & vrål – Södra Teatern 1994, föreställning med tre nya dansstycken och ett vokalt solo. Initiativtagare tillsammans med Barbro Isaksson.

・ knok – solo, Moderna Dansteatern 1995

・ Hide Dans – Hide kalkbrott på Gotland 1996

・ Ny Dans i Gammalt Slott – Svartsjö Slott 1996

・ gräs – Svartsjö Slott 1997, koreografi/dans Minna Krook, Susanne Svantesson 

・ Hide Art Fusion – Hide kalkbrott på Gotland 1998

・ Vinda – En dansföreställning för barn 5 – 9 år. Spelades 1998-1999

・ på smal väg mot stjärnorna – solo på Länsteaten i Visby, 2000

・ det beror på… duett, (ungdom- och vuxenföreställning) 2000-2001

・ Stråk – solo, 2003

・ Manuskriptet Dodo Crossfade – Weld, 2012

・Quartet de la passion – solo 2017

・Prokofiev – Göteborgs konserthus, Svenska klubben i Paris mm 2017. 2018

・Indigo – Premiär på Länsteatern på Gotland 2020